Ev'ry One to His Own way

I finished up my final Pluralism class today. The instructor, after handing out course-evaluation sheets, told us we were all free to leave after completing them. As we turned in the forms one by one and left the classroom on our own time, a classmate turned to us all said, “Well, that was an appropriate way to end the class.” What he meant was this: the final dismissal for Pluralism -- a course teaching us that truth is relative, that all points of view are equal in value, and that we can never know anything for sure -- left us all on our own and without a grand vision for the central ideas of theology or for our lives. There was nothing of substance in the class material upon which we could pattern ourselves, but only the lame evaluations of subjective feelings and human experiences. The moment was a final grey emptiness for a class that taught and meant nothing. It was the real-life bad ending to a narrative from Sartre or Camus.

As I went despondently from the conference room, contemplating how we were all free to leave on our own whenever we were able to and with whatever conclusions we could gather on our own from the class, a scriptural phrase from Handel’s Messiah came to mind. The chorus, “All we like sheep have gone astray, we have turned ev'ry one to his own way” (originally found in Is. 53:6), turned over in my soul. It related well to the situation. There we were, leaving class as individuals, free to come up with our own truths -- our own “way,” as it were -- and we were completely alone and astray. Is. 53:6 typifies for me well the Pluralism course and much of post-modern culture, where truths are no longer truths and few believe in anything. All are able to construct their own versions of reality, create their own understandings of truth, and wander towards their own religions. All can make themselves or others into gods because, like Nietzsche claimed, the real God is dead.

The truth, however much Nietzsche might protest, is just the opposite. While we attempt to make our own religions and follow after our own gods of selfish thinking, what we are actually doing is making complete fools of ouselves. We claim to be lords over ourselves and to need no outside direction or divine revelation, yet we are completely astray. We know no community or love or truth, but have instead known a grey dreariness and despair that leaves us confused and lonely and disgusted with ourselves. I can only imagine what the true living Lord sees. Surely “All we like sheep have gone astray, we have turned ev'ry one to his own way.” He knows we are completely lost, completely dumb, and have completely missed the mark. In our individual seeking after truths, we have wandered away from He Who Is the Real Truth – the Divine Logos, Jesus Christ.

It is no wonder that our Lord is called the Good Shepherd. As Truth, Christ sets the boundaries for what is real and what is not and makes distinctions between what is good and what is not good (John 1). In this and every capacity, the Good Shepherd stays steady. He remains the only eternal guide of truth, being Himself the source and fulfillment of everything. He is the reality of the universe, and He’s looking to guide us back to where we belong. He longs for relationship with us, to bring us back into the fold. He desires to offer us security and love in the flock of truth and of faith and of the way things really are. We do not have to wander around on our own in pursuit of false gods and shallow philosophies, but we are invited, called upon, and goaded to know the Good Shepherd ; He is the one who knows His sheep and can also be known by them. He is the truth, the one who protects the flock and lays down His life for them that they may have life and have it abundantly.

"Mankind, far and near, give heed to
This good Shepherd's loving call;
To His pasture let Him lead you,
Feel His tender care for all
Let Him take away your sadness,
Gifts of grace He will impart,
He will give eternal glaqdness --
Blest, who giveth Him his heart!"